Villas-Boas needs to free up cash to fund his planned transfer plunge, which has already started with a 17-million-pound purchase of Paulinho, while Barcelona's David Villa and Soldado are also on the Portuguese manager's shopping list.

According to The Sun, Besiktas are leading the chase for Adebayor and are willing to pay Tottenham five million pounds for the 29-year-old Togolese forward, although Fenerbahce could also make a bid.

Villas-Boas has been widely expected to sign Villa in the lead up to the 2013/14 English Premier League season but it looks like Soldado has become the Portuguese coach's preferred forward target with Tottenham keen to pay 15 million pounds for the 28-year-old Spaniard.

But Valencia are reportedly holding out for 25 million pounds and the La Liga club's president Amadeo Salvo Lillo has claimed they will not let Soldado go cheaply.

"We have suffered money problems but not so significantly that we will release players on the cheap," Lillo said.